Jenna Latham: The Road to Butler University

Jenna Latham, age 17, is in the process of transitioning from Academy student to joining a college dance program this Fall. Read our interview below to learn about Jenna's experience auditioning for colleges across the country and her decision to attend Butler University!

 

Pictured: Academy Student, Jenna Latham  

When did you start classes at the Ballet Academy of Central Florida and what do you want your college major to be?
I officially became a student at BACF when I was a sophomore in high school, but I participated in the summer intensives prior to enrolling in the full program. I’m going to college to major in dance and hopefully minor in environmental studies.

What colleges have you applied to?
I applied to the University of Arizona, Butler University, NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Boston Conservatory, Pointpark University, and Dominican University of California (Alonzo King LINES BFA program).

Pictured: Academy Student, Jenna Latham

 What is your dream college to be accepted to?
It’s hard for me to choose one school that I love the most. Each of them have different strengths, my top schools are Butler University and Dominican University. Butler has great classical ballet training, and Dominican is known for a more contemporary approach to ballet.

How have you auditioned for the colleges? Video submissions or in-person auditions?
For all my auditions I chose to do in-person auditions. I found that my best experiences and results came when I auditioned at the school.

 Pictured: Academy Student, Jenna Latham, warms up at the barre

Is each school's application process similar?
A lot of the schools use the common app which makes it really easy to apply for a bunch of schools at once. Within each university the dance programs require a completely separate application from the academic application. Most do not require videos, but a few do.

What would be your best tip for someone applying to college for dance?
Do your research. Finding the right college was difficult because I wanted to keep training vigorously while also learning new things. There are some seriously incredible programs out there that still provide the same training and performance opportunities as working companies, but finding them takes a lot of time on the internet.

Pictured: Academy Student, Jenna Latham

What have you learned from Central Florida Ballet that has helped you in your auditions?
CFB has helped me become a better dancer technically, but beyond that I have learned how to keep cool headed and light hearted in auditions. I learned that little mistakes aren’t deal breakers and that showing off your style and personality is what the judges really want to see.

What has surprised you most about applying to colleges? And do you have a funny/interesting story to tell from your audition travels?
Until this year the concept of dancing in college seemed pointless because I didn’t realize there were so many good programs out there. What surprised me most was how wonderful the class auditions were. My skepticism of college dance has completely fallen away after my experiences. So, there was one weekend where I had both my NYU and Boston audition within 24 hours of each other, and unfortunately, I left my ballet shoes in New York. I went into my Boston audition with as much confidence as a barefoot ballerina could. Fortunately the teachers were extremely kind and considerate of the situation. Right as I was losing hope for the rest of class my mom was able to discretely slip me a brand new pair of shoes before center began.

For more information about the Central Florida Ballet & Academy, please visit www.centralfloridaballet.com or call 407-849-9948. 

***New Students dance for free in August***
Book your spot by emailing mrivera@centralfloridaballet.com